Cyan Shows Shelved Myst Prototype 'Project Anglerfish' Footage
The release of the shelved prototype footage, combined with the package release of the remakes and the 40th anniversary plans, signals Cyan's strategy to keep the Myst franchise active despite the project's cancellation and the studio's 2025 downsizing.
Key Facts
- Cyan released a teaser video for 'Project Anglerfish,' a shelved prototype set in the Myst universe, during Mysterium 2026.
- The prototype was created over about four months more than a year ago as an internal pitch for a publisher, but development is now halted.
- Package versions of the full remakes of Myst and Riven will be released for PC, PS5, and Xbox, following their digital release in May 2026.
- Cyan plans a fan event in Spokane, Washington, in 2027 to mark its 40th anniversary, which Rand Miller founded with his brother Robin Miller.
- Cyan conducted layoffs in March 2025 that reduced the company to about half its size, according to a previous announcement.
Reporting from 2 sources: 4Gamer.net, Game Spark.
Cyan, the studio behind the 1990s adventure classics Myst and Riven, released a teaser video for 'Project Anglerfish,' a shelved prototype set in the Myst universe, during the fan event Mysterium 2026. The video, titled 'A path not taken,' was created over about four months more than a year ago as an internal pitch for a publisher, but the project could not move forward at the time and development is now halted. The footage shows an eerie Western-style mansion, underground devices, and the series' iconic Linking Book, along with a voice message addressed to a character called 'Guildsman' and a tense story involving a strict father figure. Cyan said it remains committed to new games and experiences in the Myst world. Separately, the studio announced package versions of the full remakes of Myst and Riven, which were digitally released in May 2026, for PC, PS5, and Xbox, with the PC version including a digital code. Cyan also plans a fan event in Spokane, Washington, in 2027 to mark its 40th anniversary, which Rand Miller founded with his brother Robin Miller.
- The teaser video is titled "A path not taken: Project Anglerfish" and was posted to YouTube alongside the Mysterium 2026 presentation, not just shown at the event.
- The prototype was built solely as a pitch to publishers, and Cyan said it could not move forward "for various reasons" at the time.
- The footage includes a mysterious man who shouts with visible emotion, books that seem to hold significance, and transitions to specific eras, alongside the mansion, underground devices, and Linking Book.
- Fan reaction in the video's comments has been strongly positive, with many viewers praising the prototype as wonderful even in its unfinished state and hoping development could somehow resume.
- Cyan Worlds downsized significantly in March 2025, laying off 12 people, which reduced the studio to about half its previous size, according to the announcement at the time.
- The package versions of the Myst and Riven remakes are aimed at collectors, with the PC version including a digital code.
- The 40th anniversary event in Spokane, Washington, is planned for 2027 and will be held in the city where Cyan is headquartered.
Synthesized by Yomimono from the 2 cited sources below, including Japanese-language reporting where cited, then editorially reviewed before publishing.